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Chapter Thirty-six


"If you take the time to think about me at night."

...

"I hope it doesn't keep you up."

...

"I hope it does."

...

"You used to say this song was to make me feel a certain way."

...

"What was it again?"

...

"I've forgotten."

...

"But sometimes, when it rains."

...

"I think I can hear you sing a familiar phrase."


The next morning, Sakura awoke with a greeting from a fresh blanket of snow all over the village. Though the clouds had cleared, and the sun shined brightly, Gaara had explained to Sakura that the white flakes never let up through the night until early morning.

"Isn't it pretty?" Sakura asked him.

Gaara agreed, but he did so sitting closely next to the small heater.

They each began their morning routine of getting dressed, but Sakura had stopped Gaara as she watched him pull his jacket, and boots, on.

"I'll go out and bring us some breakfast," she told him. "You just wait here for me."

Sakura's chest tightened when she saw Gaara's face morph into interminable anguish. He looked almost on the verge of tears, and his voice cracked like he would cry at any moment.

"Why?" he whimpered. "I want to go out too."

A part of Sakura almost caved in then but, as she recollected the task she needed to do alone first, she bit her tongue to keep her doubts down.

"I'll be real quick. I promise," Sakura said, apology in her look. "After we eat, we'll spend the whole day together outside. You'll get to play in the snow.

Gaara's reply was an angry toss of his boot, and an exaggerated huff as he fell flat on his back.

Sakura quickly came to him then, scooting herself behind his head before bringing her face down close to his. To her approach, Gaara quickly turned his head away so as not to look at her, and his pout was strong.

"Gaara-aaa," Sakura sang lightly, trying to get him to look at her.

Gaara huffed, but still did not turn to look at Sakura or answer her call.

"Gaara, my best friend, why won't you speak to your dear ol' Sakura? Do you hate me that much now?" Sakura continued to lightly sing.

She knew her words then would get a reaction, for the small boy understood hate and loss. His eyes quickly found her then, and even if his gaze was passive looking up into her eyes, he was quick to speak,

"No, I don't. I will never hate you, Sakura."

In that instant Sakura again felt her chest tighten, and she reached down to hug the boy.

"You're so cute," she told him. "I could never hate you either, Gaara."

After her words, her hold tightened.

"Never," she repeated.

After that, the boy reluctantly allowed Sakura to go without him.

As Sakura made it out into the white streets, she was instantly blinded by the sun's reflection in the snow, and she desperately tried to warm herself as she began her walk.

'I suppose I got use to the heat back in Suna,' she thought.

She took one last glance back towards the hotel, just to be sure the mischievous boy did not follow.

'Sorry, Gaara,' Sakura thought with a heavy frown. 'I just have to be sure of something first...'

She turned and began a small sprint through the village. She kept her mind clear, and eyes out in front of her. She did this because she worried herself getting distracted by the familiar faces. She worried her old routine of stopping and greeting those she knew would return, and worse, she wondered how long she could keep her voice silent and not warn others about the future.

'I could save Sandaime. I could save Jiraiya and I could save Asuma-sensei' she thought. 'I could save many who will die in during Orochimaru's attack, and other fights to come.'

Sakura quickly shook her head to those thoughts, trying to rid of them. She couldn't interfere with fate, even if fate decided to send her back here. As much of a change as she put in Gaara, his kindness in the future sprouted without her. She really did convince herself that action had been no harm, but to actually save lives, stop huge events…

'You could stop Sasuke,' something deeper in her mind told her. 'Someone could watch him more closely, or you could hint to them about Orochimaru's plan.'

That thought made her stop in her tracks.

'You could do what you had wanted to in the past...'

Every night, when she was young, after Sasuke's abandonment, Sakura would often fantasize of the possibilities she would take if given another chance. In her young mind, she had dreamed for a chance like now before realizing that it would have to be through her own hands that would help bring Sasuke back. Instead of wishing, she set out to accomplish a goal that she achieved many years later.

And yet…

Buried in her thoughts, Sakura hadn't noticed the man who was now curiously watching her. Indulged in his book, he would have paid the woman no mind, but she had stopped so suddenly and remained frozen on the busy sidewalk that she had eventually nabbed his attention. He watched her as minutes began to pass, and Sakura still chose to look out distantly and in her same spot. Perhaps she was lost, the man assumed, and tried to convince his mind that it was not his problem. Yet, when her presence distracted him still, he decided he would just leave to find somewhere else to enjoy his book.

His steps went passed her before his mind reminded him that he had never seen this black-haired lady before. Perhaps she was not from the village, his mind told him. Perhaps, she needed help, his mind told him. It would be then, as the young man turned around and made a straight line back to Sakura, that he realized there was something that was drawing him back to her. Though he couldn't explain, he also couldn't ignore her like he did with so many others in the past. To him, it was kind of annoying. Despite that feeling though, he smiled as he stopped in front of Sakura.

"Need help?" he began. "Have you by chance lost your way?"

Sakura's thoughts quickly vanished as a voice broke through to her, and her eyes whipped fast to the young man's. Yet, as their gazes locked, Sakura tensed and her eyes even widened.

'Kakashi-sensei!' her mind screamed.

Of all the familiar faces she could have ran in to first, it seemed almost comical that it was his. How out of character for him, she realized then that he approached her first. For her, there was also this awkward tension knowing they were just about the same age now.

"Um…" she began, lost in her own words as she tried to read his facial expression

In her mind, a small anger was also fomenting. She wanted to ask him what the heck was he thinking sending her on a courier mission to Suna. She wanted to tell him of all the trouble he had put her through, and that he better help her now find a way home. Yet, as she lingered silently, his carefree face began to morph to confusion. He was inspecting her then; quietly trying to interpret her motives. He was a future teacher following one of his many rules that he, tried, to drive into his students; Look underneath.

"Haruno residence?" she quickly asked, wanting to end the conversation fast and move on her way.

Yet, as she asked this, her heart dropped dreadfully when she saw Kakashi's eyes widen some in surprise. His words, even more, shocked her.

"Haruno," he repeated "That's a name I haven't heard in some time."


Sakura jogged now. If given the choice, she would be running, but she knew not to draw the attentive eye in her direction.

"Passed away in a fire."

Kakashi's words rang in her mind as she continued to sprint lightly.

"Passed away?! Both Kizashi and Mebuki?!" Sakura had retorted, shocked.

The silver-haired man had nodded.

"Then!" Sakura began to ask again. "Then there daughter…?!"

One of Sakura's biggest worries coming to the village was the older, but familiar, face she would be showing off. Maybe if others couldn't make the connection with her now dark hair, she knew her parents, if they saw her, would catch the familiarity in a flash. Not to mention, if Gaara were to see a tiny version of her own self, name and looks, she was sure big questions she couldn't answer would arise. With time, long ago, she had realized she was going to have to explain to Gaara that he would one day meet a girl who resembled her. Sakura was yet unsure at that time if she would reveal the truth to him, as absurd as it would sound, or if she would convince him that that Sakura, and her own self, were two different people. She grimaced thinking of her young self, and how passing she would probably be of Gaara if he approached her during the exams. Her mind, at the age she first met Gaara, was solely set on Sasuke.

These decisions of what to tell Gaara exactly would have come, though, once she found a way back home. Later, always later in her mind. Ready, when she would decide he was ready. Time, in time she decided.

Yet…

Her steps slowed as she walked past the familiar sculpture. The giant stone, red fire did not draw her eyes, instead she looked out towards the many graves. The atmosphere was completely calm and quiet until the crunch under her boots, from the snow, echoed as she walked deeper into the cemetery. Her forefathers resting place was same, the Haruno name was not scattered but instead took up their own place in the cemetery just like many other families. Last she had visited, the stones had stopped at her grandparents' names, but now there were two new stones coming forward that she knew her own world did not have.

Sakura stared hard towards the graves of her parents. It was unnerving to her in the sense that this would, one day, very well be a future that would happen to her despite her parents still healthy and prospering in her own time. After all, everyone met their end one day. The sight was unsettling the longer she stared, but she held on to her strength with the knowledge that these people were technically not her true parents, but it did raise questions and make her wonder,

'Is this my fault?'

Though their passing was before her arrival, Sakura had wondered if this world had been altered for her sake. Somewhere, did someone or something know she would come to the past one day? Had it dispose both Kizashi and Mebuki because Sakura's presence shook balance in this world, or was just this another world completely?

Maybe everything here, where Sakura thought was the same, actually wasn't. She was aware of Gaara's hard past, but maybe she assumed too much of what happened now had also transpired in her world. Maybe certain events weren't the same, disregarding her. Maybe Gaara in her own time had someone else watching him, maybe Annaisha hadn't passed. Maybe he wasn't as lonely in her own time, perhaps he was just an angry child. In other words, she couldn't discern now how different this world was from her own. She thought it the same, but how could she now looking towards the graves under her?

Sakura knelt down, gently pressing her hand against each stone slab.

"I'm sorry," she whispered to them. "It wasn't my choice."

If this was somehow her fault, she apologized. Her parent's were good people, she believed these people were as well, and was hurt to see their lives ended so soon. Yet, she also explained, asked them forgive, that it had been out of her control. Standing back, Sakura searched for one more slab, just in case, even despite what Kakashi had told her.

"Daughter?" he had asked with blinking, wide eyes. "Mmm, I don't recall the two having a child, or expecting."

Through the stones, and many names, she did not find a Sakura. It felt like all the more evidenced piled up on her then that this world had been revolved around her unexpected arrival. That, or this was all merely an illusion of some kind. That thought itself was too painful to accept, however. There was a little boy waiting on her, expecting her, smiling towards her, embracing her, and she couldn't put his face under the category of illusion. Gaara was all too real to her, and she would accept nothing else.

Sakura then looked up towards the sky above.

"I'm sorry," she repeated.

She said this to a little girl who apparently had no part in this world, but deserved one. Perhaps her small role would be replaced by another, but Sakura still apologized to her younger self of this world, though non-existent it seemed. If her presence robbed anything, she would ask forgiveness to whoever controlled this world, but she also hoped there was someone out there who would take up her role. The village needed her, Naruto needed her, and Sasuke needed her. Most of all, as she hoped through her departure, Gaara would find her and have peace in his heart.

Yet, like in her own world, it seemed there was only one Sakura here.

For now.


"Sakura's back!" Gaara had cried enthusiastically upon her return.

The young woman smiled, surprised to see Gaara so energetic compared to his calm self. To her return, he began racing around the room, using his sand to jump here and there while crying out in almost a song.

"She's back! She's back! She's back!"

Eventually she settled the boy down to some warm soup and rice for breakfast. For her, rice and a can of warm coffee was enough to keep her going through the day. Coffee was always a medics friend to keep them going through the work day. They were quiet as they ate, Sakura still lost in her own thoughts from earlier as Gaara watched her curiously while she opened her can of coffee.

"What are you drinking?" he eventually asked.

"Coffee," she replied, her eyes still looking out towards the window.

Gaara chewed some more while staring at her.

"Can I try?" he asked.

To his question, Sakura smirked. The black coffee had no sugar or milk, and she stuck out her tongue towards Gaara before replying,

"It's bitter. You won't like it."

Despite this, Sakura could see Gaara's eyes still sparkle with amusement, so she handed the can over to his reaching hand. She began to chuckle as Gaara sniffed the opening some before grimacing in disgust.

"It won't taste anything like kakigori," she warned him.

Gaara brought the can slowly to his lips. He mentally prepared himself for the bad taste before tilting his head back and lifting the can above him.

Sakura smiled mischievously, watching Gaara take his first, big gulp of the coffee and anticipating the moment he would pull back and cry in disgust. Yet, as the seconds began to pass, Sakura could see the ball in his throat bounce back and forth while he continued to chug the black substance.

'What the?' Sakura quickly thought. 'He actually likes it?!'

Sakura quickly reached over the table, pulling back the can.

"Give me that!" she cried.

She shook the can lightly once it was back in her hands, jaw dropping as she realized Gaara had drank about a quarter more of the can.

"Ah," she murmured. "You drank so much of it."

She turned back to watch Gaara licking his lips, trying to steal some more of the lingering taste. Her eye twitched as she thought to herself.

'So much caffeine...'

She eyed the boy, as if she expected the effects of caffeine to suddenly take place. Yet, to her stare, he stared back momentarily before offering her a big smile.

"I like it," he said before returning to his rice.

Sakura, not amused at all by Gaara's nonchalant words, hummed instead of speaking. She went back to stare at the can for moment, blinking as she saw the opening glisten lightly with saliva from Gaara's taste. The act of sharing drinks from the same can, or any food from the same bowl, grossed her out. Unless she was the recipient of Sasuke's own can, or bottle of water, as much as she tried to convince him when they were younger to share with her, typically she would toss what others drank or ate from her.

However, this time, even if the glistening moisture should have made her stomach curl with disgust, she found another opportunity to tease the boy.

"One day," Sakura began before looking towards the boy. "I'll get to brag to all the people in Suna."

Gaara paused his eating then, looking back towards Sakura skeptically.

"Why?" he asked, his brow bone raising.

Sakura chuckled once before shaking the can of coffee for him to see.

"I'll get to go around telling everyone how Gaara kissed me."

Sakura laughed lightly as she saw the boy's eyes widen and jaw begin to hang. He had even slowly descended his arm to the table, and his eyes whipped around the room and towards Sakura back and forth before he gulped.

For her, she took another glance at the can.

'Maybe it will be my blackmail,' Sakura thought humorously, as she could only imagine Gaara's future face to a story such as this.

Yet, her attention was stolen by the little boy as he asked in a whisper,

"You're...You're going to kiss...me?"

For Sakura, the kiss only represented a joke to her mind.

To Gaara, even if young, her words made his mind spark with recollecting words she had once told him. It had gone back to the night they had seen Baki and Annaisha kissing, and while the concept to him before was just an intimacy people shared, he had learned it's deeper meaning through Sakura's teaching.

"Kissing? Why?" he had once asked her, and she explained.

"Because they love each other."

Did this mean, he wondered, that Sakura…

However, before his mind could wrap around the concept, and what her meaning entitled, Sakura gave another chuckle before sipping on her coffee. He watched as she gently placed a hand on her cheek then, watching her feign deep heartfelt.

"Gaara," she murmured. "You're my first kiss."

He was confused, and now watched with narrow eyes as Sakura turned to him with a giant grin before shaking the can once more.

"Indirect kiss," she laughed.

Now it made all the more sense to him. Another one of her jokes, but despite her laughter, he found himself instead returning to his food trying to drown out the anger in his mind over what had just happened. Yet, as her laughing continued to ring in the room, he spoke out.

"Your first kiss?" he asked her with a sneer that he held for others instead of her. "Shouldn't you have had one by now?"

Looking back at her, Gaara instantly regretted his words. He had tried to hurt her like she had him just now, but had expected her reply to be a loud, angry cry. Instead, what he got was sad eyes, and a heavy frown as she looked down towards the floor below her. Her laugh had died, and the room filled with silence as Sakura lost herself to her thoughts.

For Sakura, it felt almost not that long ago that Ino called her stupid for holding out for one man. Hinata, meanwhile, had told her she had respected Sakura's perseverance, and that holding out for the right one would be rewarding once she found him. Each woman's view on her was different, and while she didn't care for any of their judgment, she did have to admit waiting all these years was both hard, and a little sad. She endured the heartache of not seeing Sasuke for so long, and held on to his departing words that he would see her again soon to keep herself from straying to others.

'Love is hard...' she decided, even if she saw the world around her with many, happy relationships.

She took a sip of her coffee before looking out the window.

"Maybe," she answered Gaara. "But...I'm waiting."

Gaara's eyes had widened some, and he watched Sakura stare out the window for some time before asking,

"Who are you waiting for?"

To his question, Sakura shook her head. She looked back towards the boy with a forced smile then.

"I'm waiting for you to finish up your food so we can go out!" Sakura told him then. "Hurry up, and stop asking and saying silly things. A kid like you shouldn't worry about gross stuff like kissing, you should be thinking about where we will go next to play."

Gaara's frown was heavy as he saw the hurt still behind Sakura's smile, and her assumptions, in a way, felt like she was undermining him because of his age. Nonetheless, he left the topic be, and instead nodded towards Sakura before picking back up his rice.


Surprisingly, their first tribulation in the village began as soon as Sakura beckoned Gaara outside. Instead of following, he lingered at the entryway, and peered at those crossing the street in front of him.

"Come on," Sakura told him, offering her hand so he would follow suit.

Instead, he continued to stand back and watch the many faces walk by. For him, the masses of people were a bit intimidating. He was use to much smaller groups, ones that kept their distance and gave him almost a whole street of space. Here, people crowded the pavement, and no eyes fell to him. It was relieving in its own way, but also daunting. He couldn't imagine the hoards of this many people staring down at him with distaste, but eventually, he built up his courage with Sakura's next words.

"If you stay in there the whole time you'll never see a cherry blossom."

He took small steps towards her then, stopping to peer up at those that past him just to make sure their eyes didn't fall to him. As soon as he noticed that people paid him no mind, he quickly made his way towards Sakura before latching his gloved hand into hers.

"Don't worry," Sakura told him, squeezing his hand. "I'll be here with you the whole time. Nothing bad is going to happen."

He nodded, and they began their walk.

"Where are we going?" Gaara asked, his eyes still focusing on every little thing.

Sakura hummed in thought.

"Want me to teach you how to build a snowman?"

The boy smiled, nodding enthusiastically.

"Un!" he answered.

Their walk to the park was not a short one, for Gaara stopped at every monument and in front of every store before pointing in and asking Sakura to explain to him what significance each place held. She did her best to explain before dragging the boy along. After all, their time here was not long, and she didn't want to spend it all just parading around the village.

"Matsuri wanted me to bring her something back..."

Gaara had mumbled those words to Sakura through their walk, and it caused the young woman to stop in her steps and stare down at the boy in wonder. In the back of her mind, she had tried to keep Matsuri's request fresh in her thoughts since she assumed Gaara to forget. Yet, to his announcement, Sakura couldn't help but smile gently.

"You're pretty selfless, aren't you?" Sakura ended up asking him.

Though, the answer to that question was already obvious to her. In the end, he would sacrifice himself for his village and also lead a war to save his first friend. Gaara was the definition of altruistic, and she was happy to see his child self now reflect this. It countered very much the angry teenager she remembered, and she was more then confident his happy, respected self would not falter now from this point.

'Maybe he was already like this as a child,' she suddenly thought. 'Maybe it was puberty that made him snap.'

Her cheeks grew red as she stifled a laugh to that thought. She knew very well his anger did not stem from hormones, but nonetheless found the idea humorous. She also found it a little sad because, regardless of how she knew him, she preferred this tiny, sweet Gaara than his quiet, noble, older self. Though she would never perform or condone such an act, she wondered if such a jutsu existed to keep the child from growing.

Gaara did not reply to Sakura's question, but instead eyed one of those stores in front of him. It was a silent cue for Sakura to bring him in to the small trinket store.

"What did you want to give her?"

"...I don't know."

What do you give someone, Gaara wondered. It would be his first time giving a gift to another, and his mind suddenly juggled with doubt and confusion. However, his jostled nerves left him when he remembered Sakura's guiding hand. In his mind, too, he tried to analyze possibilities. He tried to think back to his brother and sister, comparing them to Matsuri. He remembered every child loved toys, but as he picked up a doll, it was Sakura who shook her head.

"Let's get her something special. Something she can't find in Suna."

Gaara scratched his head then, this time trying to remember what Temari valued when she came to his room. Matsuri and her were more similar to age anyway. He picked up a small fan.

"That?" Sakura asked.

Gaara studied the object while trying to figure out in his mind if the fan was an acceptable choice. However, as Sakura moved her hand into his to hold the fan, whipping it quickly out of his grasp and causing a small breeze to lift and tickle his hair, he let out a loud giggle.

"Do you think she'll like it?" Gaara asked Sakura as the woman examined the fan.

Sakura hummed in thought before shaking her head and placing the fan back.

"That seems more like something Temari would like."

Stumped again, the boy narrowed his eyes as he glanced out in front of him.

"This is hard," he admitted. "Girls are picky."

Sakura chuckled hearing that, so much truth in his words.

"You have no idea," she told him.

Gaara's eyes slid towards Sakura, watching her for some time before he spoke,

"If it was you, what would you want?"

Sakura's eyes widened then in surprise.

"Me?" she asked, before tilting her head some in thought.

As seconds turned to minutes without an answer, Gaara once again narrowed his eyes.

"Girls are too picky," he mumbled.

"Hey now…!" the woman replied, poking Gaara lightly in the stomach. "That's not true for all of us, and boys can be just as picky."

She took a moment to eye the room for a moment before sighing.

"If it was from you, Gaara," she said before turning to grin at him. "I'd cherish anything you gave me."

She didn't miss the way Gaara's eyes had widened then, and even pink colored his cheeks seeing her giant grin. As he turned away to hide his shy face, Sakura decided to change the subject so as not to tease him anymore then she had already today.

"How about this?" she asked, picking a cheap necklace up for him to see.

It was a small necklace with a small, multi-colored, looking stone. A cheap thing, but something Sakura assumed the girl would like, if not the necklace than at least the stone.

"This stone is found only in the Land of Fire," Sakura explained to Gaara. "You won't find it in Suna, so Matsuri will be able to show it off and tell everyone how you were kind enough to get her something so special."

The boy's eyes only grew brighter and brighter to each word Sakura told him, and he needed no more convincing making the purchase.

"Don't lose it now," she told him as she offered him the box with the necklace.

She smiled when she saw Gaara tuck the box neatly away before he looked back up at her.

"I hope she doesn't hate me if she doesn't like it," he replied, and made Sakura frown heavily.

"There's no way she will hate it, or you, ever," Sakura said before offering her hand to Gaara.

The boy reached for her, and they continued their walk as Sakura continued to speak.

"Gifts are really meaningful. It shows you care for the person a lot to think about them and use your resources to make them happy."

As she explained this, Sakura realized Gaara may not grasp gift giving as prominent as she was portraying. After all, it wasn't his money spent for the gift, but his heart was certainly in the right place remembering Matsuri had asked. Surprisingly, even if he kept quiet, Gaara understood this teaching with ease and smiled as he remembered his small, blue bunny back home.

As the two reached the park, Gaara had stood back some to ogle how big the park was, and how many swings and slides this one had compared to one back at home. It would be Sakura beckoning him to follow as she laughed while rushing towards the thick, white powder.

"Come on," she told him. "Help me build a snowman!"

The concept of building one almost came naturally to him despite never seeing snow before; as if the task was embedded in his child mind. He would build the smaller parts of the body before handing the ball over to Sakura who used her strength to roll the ball of snow around to make the snowman as tall as her. She had picked up the small boy to place rocks for the eyes, and guided him how to draw a huge smile on the man of snow before the two stepped back to appreciate their work. It would be Sakura placing her hands on her hips before stating,

"For your first snowman, it looks pretty decent."

Gaara sniffed before wiping his cold nose, taking in Sakura's words.

"I think I can make another one."

Sakura turned to watch as Gaara took a deep breath in suddenly. Her eyes widened curiously as he stuck his hands out in front of him before he twitched his fingers simultaneously, and she stepped back some once his sand began snaking out of the his gourd on his back. Despite living in the desert heat that accumulated no snow, Sakura pouted lightly when she realized Gaara always had the means to use mother nature to shift and contort to his liking. In short, while it would never be a snowman, Gaara had the resources of always making a sandman, and it only took him seconds to make it rise as tall as the snowman they built.

"Ho?" Sakura hummed, impressed by Gaara's skills. "I guess I should have known you'd already done something like this before. Now that I think about it, you use to shift the sand for Matsuri..."

Her voiced trailed to a stop, but her head whipped fast towards Gaara once she heard his heavy panting. The boy continued to breath hard, and used his knees to keep his now heavy body up, and Sakura could even see some light sweat perspiring.

"Gaara, are you alright?" Sakura asked as she knelt to his level and placed a gentle hand on his back.

To her approach, the boy forced a tired grin to assure her he'd be alright, but his breaths replaced his assuring voice. To this, Sakura tilted her head in wonder. She was aware of the chakra Gaara had, and couldn't imagine how something so trivial as this had tired him out.

"You're out of breath, just from that?" she asked, watching the boy finally straighten his back up. "I thought you were stronger than this."

"I...am..." he breathed out to Sakura, trying to bring up a visual facade to hide away his fatigue.

He drew in a big breath through his nose before exhaling through his mouth and then turned to face Sakura. She was surprised to be met with narrow eyes.

"Don't think of me incapable to hurt, or kill, others," he suddenly proclaimed.

Sakura raised her eyebrows then, trying to stifle back a laugh from this young boy's sudden angry words. It just looked too comical for her as he proclaimed this next to a snowman and sandman.

"Right, right," Sakura said, standing herself back up and placing her hands on her hips again. "But...You do know I'm still the strongest between us."

With a blink, Gaara's narrow gaze was up with Sakura's. He said nothing, but his eyes held a challenge.

"Hey now," Sakura warned him. "Don't get so worked up about it. You're still just a kid after all."

She was right, he seemed to remember, for his angry gaze let up as he sighed and tore his eyes back towards the snow.

'What?' Sakura lightly mused. 'He still has some anger in him?'

As he looked distantly out ahead of him, Sakura took the distraction to go in and pinch his cheek before his sand swatted her palm lightly back.

"Ow," Gaara hissed, rubbing his cheek before turning to look back at Sakura.

"Don't get grumpy on me now. You know what we need to do next, right?"

Gaara blinked some, eyes never tearing away from Sakura.

"What?" he asked curiously.

"Watch," Sakura grinned. "I'll show you how strong I am."

Sakura's smile was smug as she casually strolled back towards the snowman they had built. She cracked her knuckles before bringing a fist up. Her punch was aimed towards the snowman's head, and as she threw her fist towards its face, she suddenly stopped her fist before flicking the snowman's face with a small tap of her finger. An explosion of powdery white suddenly showered both her and Gaara, and Sakura grinned as she heard Gaara's cries of laughter as the snowman was completely obliterated. As she turned back to Gaara, she was met with his fascinated gaze.

"You killed it!" he exclaimed.

Through his excitement Sakura did not have the heart to remind him the object was inanimate and therefore could not be killed, but instead struck a pose as she brought up her fist.

"See?" she told him. "Told you I was pretty strong."

Gaara's smile was big as he nodded to agree with Sakura.

"You're a monster, just like me!" he excitedly cried.

Sakura's eyes narrowed then.

"Monster?!" she cried, offended. "I'm not a monster, and I keep telling you that you're not one either."

The boy simply laughed to Sakura's outburst, still amused by her performance, and Sakura in time let go of her anger as his contagious laughter rubbed off on her. As their laughs died, she swung her finger in the direction of the sandman for Gaara's eyes to follow.

"Your turn," she told him.

Gaara needed no explanation regarding what was expected of him now. He was more than eager to destroy his sandy creation in a similar manner. Yet, as he bought his flat palms up and faced them toward the sandman, Sakura had stopped him.

"Try using your body instead," she told him.

This had made Gaara stop, and he tilted his head towards Sakura in confusion.

"It's my sand," he told her. "I can just call it back."

He grinned mischievously before narrow eyes went back towards the sandman.

"-or crush it!" he hissed while instinctively clenching his fist.

Sakura, however, drew back his attention.

"Nn," she said with a shake of her head. "I want you to use your fists, and legs."

"Why?" the boy whined lightly, finding his approach more amusing than hers.

"Because you need to start training your body," she told him, offering up a little guidance of her own to better Gaara. "Your sand can crush and defend, but what happens if someone comes along and gets past all of that?"

Gaara sneered lightly then.

"No such thing," he declared with confidence. "I am strong."

Despite his assured self, his mind did falter to see her way once she replied,

"Your father can."

Sakura was quiet after that, letting the boy digest this information some. He relied too much on his defense, Sakura had realized this about Gaara once her team was sent out to rescue him from Akatsuki all those years ago. While his defense was above average, she assumed Gaara could have been the stronger ninja had he just trained his body for combat, and he could save up his chakra by not relying on his sand for physical attacks.

"So, can I," she told him, and she once again earned his narrow eyes. "Don't assume your sand will save you every time."

In her mind, she pictured his older, lifeless body from the time of his rescue.

'Because it won't,' she finished the thought in her mind.

Gaara continued to stare quietly at Sakura, almost with challenging eyes that wanted to defend himself more on the matter. However, he kept quiet as Sakura returned his look, and he followed her order once she nudged her head towards the sandman.

"Go on then," she told him.

She watched as he punched, clawed, and kicked the sandman down a bit. With each passing hit, his angry eyes let up, and he laughed in amusement destroying his sand. After all his grains raced back to his gourd, he turned to Sakura with a grin and waiting for the praise she always had for him.

Sakura came up to him with a smile of her own and gently pet his hair.

"You're a good boy, Gaara," she told him. "You're one of the strongest kids I've ever met. Keep training, and I know you'll be one of the strongest men too."

Gaara grinned then, happy to hear such a claim from Sakura.

"I'll throw punches like you one day!"

Sakura tilted her eyes then and hummed in thought before snickering and sticking her tongue out at the boy.

"Nah!" she told him. "There's no way you'll catch up to me!"

Gaara tightened his fists then, stomping his foot in a small tantrum.

"I will too!" he cried back at Sakura.

The young woman opened her mouth, about to retort, but was suddenly cut short by small cries that raced in their direction.

"Did you see that? He can move sand!"

"Hey, hey, do it again!"

"Who is that kid anyway?"

Sakura stepped back as a small group of kids suddenly appeared, and they all raced, or made some way, towards the small redhead and surrounded him. She blinked, wondering where such a large group had come from, but it made all the more sense to her as she heard a familiar voice call out.

"Everyone, don't wander off where I can't see you!"

Sakura turned her head then to the older man's voice, and her eyes widened to who she saw.

"Iruka-sensei," she whispered for her ears only.

However, as she took in his appearance, a nervous laugh left her then.

"...He looks so much younger," she whispered.

She did the math quick in her head and realized Iruka had to be about a few years younger than her now. Next to her, the crowd around Gaara continued to speak.

"What's your name?"

"Where are you from?"

"How did you get that mark on your head?"

"How can you use sand like that, you're about the same age as us!"

Sakura eyed Gaara then, and though he backed away from the group slowly with shifty, nervous eyes, he gulped before nodding to the kids.

"Gaara," he whispered finally. "I'm Gaara."

More questions from the kids came. Requests for him to show them his sand, or to come play with them, came. So many voices spoke to him then that Gaara was quiet and wide-eyed staring towards each child. To it all, Sakura smiled. Never before had a crowd with smiles and interest for the boy form like this, and while his mind in the past would be warning him, Gaara was able to remember Sakura's words instead then.

"You'll have so many friends."

"Everyone will look up to you."

"It may not happen now, but someday. I promise."

Was this the start of what she had been telling him all this time, he wondered. It seemed, as Gaara's eyes went up to look up at Sakura then, her mind was exactly at the same place as his, for she smiled towards him big, before telling him,

"Go play, Gaara."

He grinned then, showing off his white teeth, minus the one tooth, before turning and facing the new kids around him with courage instead of apprehension. In a way, Sakura knew his smile was also a silent thanks to her, for guiding him down the path to a moment like this to happen to his once sad, lonely life.

"Want to build a snowman?" he asked the kids around him.

They agreed with laughs and smiles of their own, and with small steps first, eyes making sure each new face did not hold a hostile distaste, he led the children away to a small, snowy opening to do just that. And to all the moments between people back in Suna, or the tears he had shed through guilt and remorse he had learn to accept, or of him finally acknowledging Sakura and her guidance, the young woman then could not think of a moment she felt any more proud of the redhead, and he stepped forward with a smile on his face and friends by his side.

For the first time, as doubtful and worried as she had always been about it, she realized now that Gaara would be just fine without her.

'He knows what to do now,' she thought with a smile that continued to watch him.

Her smile carried her all the way to the bench, and she sighed with a smile still while taking a seat next to Iruka. Not surprisingly, as she remembered her old, bubbly teacher, he was quick to introduce himself.

"This is my first year as a teacher," he told Sakura. "They assigned me to the younger ones, but I hope in a few years I can teach some of the older students."

His eyes turned to his students then.

"They were so full of energy today...I sorta thought that maybe I could tire them out a little here at the park."

Iruka, as she remembered him to be like, could be quite the talker, and Sakura listened quietly with a smile on her face.

Iruka scratched the back of his head before nervously laughing.

"I know we should be inside and studying, I hope the other teachers don't look down on me for this."

Sakura broke her silence then, shaking her head.

"I think you're doing a wonderful job," she told him. "Sometimes a break like this is what we need. Teachers included."

She sniffed then, staring at her hands in wonder.

"Besides," Sakura began. "Life as a shinobi isn't an easy one. You never know if a memory they make here today is what helps them pull forward in a troubling time in the future."

Sakura eyed Gaara again, eyes narrowed as she spoke this, but as she looked back up at Iruka's face full of awe to her words, her eyes went round.

"Uh...Sorry," she said then. "Just me rambling."

It was Iruka's turn to shake his head, and a soft smile found his face looking at Sakura.

"No," he said. "That was a very encouraging thing to hear. Thank you."

They were quiet again for some time, watching the children play together. It wasn't until they watched Gaara begin showing off his sand did Iruka speak up.

"He is very advanced for his age."

Sakura blinked then, her mind suddenly falling to where those powers mostly stemmed from.

"He...Gaara is special," Sakura said, leaving it at just that.

A frown appeared as Sakura recollected the sad, troubled past that led them to this point. Even if she was revealing more than she ever promised to in this village, she knew her words would be kept safe by Iruka. That's just how she remembered her teacher to be.

"The adults and children in Suna are cruel to him. It warms my heart to see him playing now...with a smile."

Iruka said nothing as he stared at Sakura's solemn face. At the moment, even if she would never realize it, Iruka could sympathize with Sakura on a level of understanding. He, too, cherished someone who was mostly spat upon and looked at with ill-intent. At the thought of Sakura being like him, opening her heart to someone everyone probably told her not to, he couldn't stop himself from saying,

"You must be a very kind person. I'm sure you care a lot for him."

Sakura's eyes widened, and she whipped her head fast to Iruka who had a smile ready for her. To her silence, Iruka only kept his smile before he tilted his head.

"Am I wrong?" he asked.

He wasn't, Sakura realized. Even if she would never boast of her kindness, she couldn't deny the feelings she clearly had for the child. As happy as she was to hear someone tell her that again, it was a painful ache she had in her heart when she remembered that she would one day be torn from the small boy. It was then, she pursed her lips as she felt heat well up in her eyes. She turned her head back to stare at her lap, and as strong as she was, probably one of the strongest women of her time, she couldn't fight away the tears that began to shower down, and for once, she opened up to another about her fears.

"I have to leave him soon..." she whispered to Iruka.

Nothing was said for the moment, and Sakura assumed Iruka to think of her case as a hopeless one since he kept quiet. To her tears, she could hear Iruka sigh before speaking.

"I take it, from your tears, your return won't be anytime soon, or at all."

Sakura nodded to this, and another sigh escaped the young man.

"You'll just have to go on remembering that smile, and praying the best for him."

Sakura sniffed then.

"I know he'll be alright. I know he will make a fine person one day. I know his days in solitude are numbered. I know he has those close to him to already fall back on."

All Sakura said was true. She knew Gaara's future well. She was given a chance to see someone's future like so many with worry dreamed of having, and she was well aware of this. So, she couldn't fathom why…

"I don't know why I cry for his sake. I don't know why I worry when I've taught him the best path in life. I don't know why there's still a need in me to be by his side always, even when it forsakes many others."

To these words Iruka chuckled softly.

"Really? You don't know?"

Sakura sniffed again, turning her eyes to Iruka's smug smile.

"Have you never felt this same way before?" he inquired.

Sakura blinked, thinking for a moment where she may have cried, worried, and forsake others just for one person.

'Sasuke,' her mind instantly went to.

It seemed her silence was all the answer Iruka needed, for he shed a little more light onto Sakura then.

"It's because you love him. Worrying for his sake, and wishing him the best is just some of the many things that come with love," Iruka told her with a grin.

He carried that grin back to Gaara.

"I have no doubt he loves you too."

Sakura sniffed again, but this time also brought up a smile to her old teacher's wise mind.

"There will probably be days you will continue to cry and worry for him, but there will also be days you smile and remember all the good times that brought you to love that little boy."

His smile turned then back to Sakura.

"For you, I'm sure he will do the same. Even if it remains hard you at least have each other, in your own minds, to keep pushing forward."

Sakura returned Iruka's smile then, realizing tears threatened her no more.

"Thank you," she murmured to Iruka.

Iruka, embarrassed, just laughed lightly while scratching his chin.

"Sorry if I said too much," he told her. "I know we don't know each other. Like I said, I can just go on sometimes."

Sakura shook her head.

"Nn," she told him. "It's just what I needed to hear. You...seem to understand exactly what I'm saying."

Iruka laughed lightly then, knowing Sakura's words were all too true.

"Sort of," he told her. "I know it isn't right of me as a teacher, but there is one child that sticks out more to me than the others."

Sakura looked away, humming to herself as she remembered which child it was Iruka shared a close bond with.

'Iruka takes him for ramen just as much as I take Gaara for kakigori,' Sakura thought amused.

Before Sakura could continue her light talk, a shower of hard, cold snow suddenly came tumbling down both her and Iruka. The tree that loomed above them, over the bench, had been suddenly shaken, and the snow had fallen to only leave bare branches behind. Sakura had let out a small cry to the sensation, and as she eyed the culprit who had shook the branches, her eyes widened wide.

"Naruto!" Iruka was the first to scream his name, standing and shaking his fists at the snickering kid. "Where were you this morning?! Skipping class again?! Get down from there!"

The blonde boy grinned, lightly rocking himself on top of a branch still. He stuck his tongue towards Iruka in retaliation to his words.

"Naruto," Sakura whispered lightly.

She was in slight awe seeing her teammate suddenly reversed in age. Yet, her composure only came when she saw sand suddenly swimming towards the blonde, and she panicked when she realized Gaara's intention. Naruto, too, seemed wary of the sand and backed himself a little more into the tree.

"Whoa, whoa, whoa!" he cried as the sand came closer.

"Gaara, stop!" Sakura called, looking back towards the boy.

To Sakura's cry, Gaara somewhat sneered with a rock of his head, but nonetheless did what she had asked. His grains and sense to protect had been provoked by Sakura's scream, so it was not a battle in his mind to pull back knowing Sakura was alright.

"That was weird," Naruto mumbled, nabbing Sakura's attention once again.

She watched as Naruto jumped back down to the snowy ground, and ran away from Iruka's approach and loud screams. Though, Iruka did not pursue, he had a group of children behind him to watch after all. Instead, surprising both Gaara and Iruka, Sakura sped in the direction Naruto was headed.

"Ah!" Iruka called after her. "It's alright! You don't have to chase him, I'll reprimand him later! Besides, your little one here-!"

His voice was already lost to her though the minute she took in Naruto's appearance. She wasn't even sure why she chased after the blonde, it just felt like something her mind and body unconditionally decided on when first seeing him. She wasn't even sure what she was going to say to him if she caught up with him.

"Leave me alone you old hag!" Naruto called out when he realized she was catching up closer.

As if trying to mimic senbons, Naruto threw toothpicks towards her suddenly. Though, she needn't dodge for the boy's skills had the toothpicks flying in different directions that missed her.

"Please," Sakura called to him. "Just wait one moment."

Naruto ignored her, instead skidding before running down another street. Sakura followed, and turned just in time to watch Naruto scramble to hide himself behind a few stacked boxes. At that moment, Sakura stopped. She drew in a breath before sighing, and while she had chased the boy in a means to speak with him, she suddenly stood there frozen and contemplating. Again, she wondered what was the reason she drew herself to him. There was barely anything she could tell him that he would listen to, and to reveal the future may leave Naruto baffled.

If she thought about it deeply enough, he was not her Naruto. Yet, she wanted to believe differently, and wanted to imagine this Naruto would accomplish all the greatness her own friend back home had done. Even if there was no Sakura in this world, she smiled convincing herself this Naruto would lead the world to a more peaceful place, bring enemies together, and save his closest allies.

She believed this Naruto and Gaara would one day shake hands together with smiles on their faces.

And if this world did not want a Sakura of their own, than she would happily back away now and return to her own world knowing this Naruto would have a bright future, just as much as she was sure Gaara would as well.

"Naruto," she called to him lightly.

She could see a bright, blue eye suddenly peek at her through the cracks of the stacked boxes. She nabbed his attention with the use of his name, and he studied her then, trying to recollect her face. Yet, she gave him no time to do so, knew it was in vain anyway, and instead recollected in her mind how important this boy in front of her was. He would one day become her closest ally, almost seemingly like a brother to her. There would a drive in him to protect her first before she ever returned the favor, and he would honor a promise that he started at their young age. They would fight together, laugh together, share a passion to bring a friend home together, and they would save the world together.

Maybe with someone else, this Naruto would do the same.

"Don't ever give up. They will all depend on you someday," she told him.

She turned on her heel after that, a smile on her face still.

Only when her figure was gone from his sight, did Naruto step out from behind the boxes and look out towards the direction Sakura had taken. He took a few moments to himself before ungraciously wiping his nose with his arm.

"Crazy lady," he labeled her before turning and heading in the opposite direction.


Sakura met Gaara halfway back to the park. Her eyes widened in surprise when she caught sight of his scowl. Before she could even ask, he bellowed,

"You left me behind!"

Sakura waved her hand to this and forced a smile.

"I'm so sorry," she apologized. "I just wanted...to reprimand that child for what he had done."

Gaara groaned in distaste, even pouting some.

"I don't like it when you leave me behind," he mumbled, casting his eyes away from Sakura then.

Sakura lowered her hand then, watching the boy quietly as she tried to think of what she could say.

"If you had let me come, I could have helped," Gaara suddenly said, and turned a grin in Sakura's direction.

Some of his sand suddenly poured from his gourd and swam around both their feet, and the message became the more clear as she realized how mad looking his grin suddenly looked. Those words and look made Sakura wonder where that sweet, little child had suddenly gone to.

"Don't say that," Sakura chastened him with a frown.

Gaara's eyes had widened some to her words, almost as if she had woken him up from some dream. As she stepped back, away from his grains, was when Gaara quickly called back his sand. After that, he slowly walked to face her, and looked up at her as their eyes locked. He only pressed forward when Sakura opened an arm to him, beckoning him for an embrace.

"You still have dark thoughts?" she asked him, a little wary of what Gaara had been keeping from her.

"...Always," he whispered into her.

Yet, he remembered what she expected of him, what she taught him, how he would better himself. After all, he was still in his early stages of reform.

"I'll keep my promise," he told her, trying to ease her mind. "I won't go back on it."

Despite his words, Sakura narrowed her eyes. Maybe she was blind to see how hard this had all been for Gaara. Was he inwardly struggling more than he was outwardly showing?

"I know, Gaara," she told him while stroking his hair. "It will get easier for you, I promise."

The boy smiled as he leaned in all the more into Sakura. He believed her, after all, the path she tried to show him when she first arrived, the one he scoffed and sneered at, was coming more and more into fruition with time.

Eventually Sakura stepped back, and smiled down at the boy.

"Let's go," she said with a grin. "Got to do as much as we can, right?"

She didn't wait for his reply, or try to read his blank expression. She instead turned to lead the way, but it would be only a few steps she took before he raced suddenly to catch her by the hem of her shirt.

"Gaara?" Sakura asked, blinking in wonder as the boy suddenly kept his face down from her. "What's wrong?"

Still nothing from the boy, and Sakura slowly turned to face him; breaking his hold on her. Still with his head down, Sakura's eyes widened when she saw his hands suddenly tremble slightly. Even more surprising, as she watched him quietly, were the small tears that now suddenly fell from him to the ground.

"Gaara?!" Sakura suddenly called, falling to his level and reaching for him. "Why are you-?"

She had wanted to ask why he cried, where the sadness had stemmed from this time. Yet, as she reached for him, Gaara took a step away from her.

"Wait," he told her, shaking his head. "I-I-I…."

Sakura pursed her lips, watching Gaara try to hold back his tears to speak, but also swimming his eyes away from Sakura's concerned own.

"I know there's something wrong with me," he suddenly told her.

Sakura opened her mouth to protest, but as Gaara recognized this act, he spoke to beat her words.

"I know I probably won't make a lot of friends like you say, and there will always be people who hate me. Before you came, I didn't want anything to do with anyone anymore. I just wanted to be left alone. I didn't want anyone to hurt me again."

"Gaara..." Sakura whispered, unsure where all this sadness and doubt had come from.

"But...but...but!" Gaara again tried to speak, his tears making him choke still.

She watched as he rubbed the mark on his head suddenly, an act that calmed his tears some.

"But now I take it all back," he told her. "I don't want to alone ever again! I want to be the person you see in me."

At that moment, Sakura finally understood where Gaara's tears and words were heading to, and she smiled big.

"It's alright," she told him. "You don't have to say it. I knew you felt this way a long time ago."

She reached for him, but Gaara took a step back in protest. He shook his head at her.

"I know you knew," he told her. "Because you're amazing like that. You're so amazing to me, Sakura."

Despite his tears still, he managed a grin, not at all minding if his stray tears washed into his mouth.

"I'll keep my promise," he told her then. "No matter what, I'll do whatever I need to do to keep making you smile at me! I'll do anything you ask of me, because you do so much for me now. The people who smile at me now wouldn't have if it weren't for you!"

He fists clenched tighter then.

"If it weren't for you, there's no way I'd be happy now," he finished.

At that moment, Sakura smiled again. In the back of her mind, she knew those words were not true, for the Gaara of her time had accomplished so, so much without her. Yet, she understood what it was the boy was wanting to tell her, and if there was a moment Sakura was glad she didn't run away when she had first gotten to Suna, or when she thought how pointless it was to alter Gaara's past a little, now would definitely be that time. She had made a child smile who, without her, would take years for that to happen. She reminded a boy of the emotions still inside him before he could numb himself completely from the pain. She reminded him of…

Gaara rubbed the mark on his head again.

This time, as Sakura reached for him, he did not pull away. Instead, he spoke as she dragged him in for a hug.

"You're so kind," he told her as she pulled on his arm. "You're so bright, like a light. You're always smiling at me. You're always talking to me. You're always protecting me. You're always making sure I'm alright."

He said nothing more as Sakura wrapped her arms around him, and as Gaara finally snaked his arms around Sakura's neck, pulling her closer in to him, he finally said what he had been wanting to say this whole time.

"Thank you, Sakura," he whispered. "For everything."